2008 "TOMATO", BWA Awangarda, Wroclaw
Anna Mierzejewska presents an exhibition titled Tomato at the Awangarda Gallery in Wrocław.
Tomato is a rather specific kind of game—one that revolves around an unceasing and deeply earnest attempt at communication, in which, in truth, there are no winners. Painting, likewise, is such an attempt at communication. Whoever laughs is out of the art world and no longer a participant in the game. A game of appearances, of mysterious hierarchies—a game in which, for entirely unclear reasons, the signature is often more valuable than the artwork itself. And yet, to an outside observer, it is not evident why two objects that appear nearly identical may differ so drastically in price and significance.
In this exhibition, Anna Mierzejewska presents two series of paintings. The first depicts tomato bushes, painted with sweeping gestures and great expression, forming intricate ornamental compositions. The finesse of these works is further enhanced by the fact that the vigorously thrown lines and splashes rest not on traditional canvas, but on multi-colored, delicate fabrics—velvets, stylons, and similar materials. However, this is not merely decorative ornamentation—it is also a response to a rather frequent, yet irritating question: What does the painting represent? and What did the artist mean by it? For those for whom the answer “a tomato” is insufficient, let me offer an explanation: painting is a value in itself. It does not matter what the painting represents. Since the beginning of time, artists have used their work to speak—through painting—on the same eternal subject.
The second group of paintings, rendered on equally unconventional yet elegant surfaces, simply depict letters forming the artist’s surname. This seemingly naïve, yet in truth highly ironic, attempt at promoting one’s own name is, at the same time, remarkably bold in its use of color. Backgrounds and letters combine in striking visual arrangements, capable of beautifully enlivening many an interior. Yet one cannot help but ask: who would want to adorn their space with someone else’s name? Unless, of course, it is a name that is already well-known—or one with as much promise as Mierzejewska's.
Pawel Jarodzki
curator
© 2024 XY ANKA MIERZEJEWSKA